LETTER: Municipal capture allegations call for dual probe

Dear Sir,

The recent revelations published in the Sunday World are nothing new; Kimberley residents have long raised these concerns. Officials and politicians at Sol Plaatje Municipality continue to ignore the community, while bowing to individuals who act in their own interests.

For anyone to claim that they could “headhunt” and influence council into appointing Thapelo Matlala as municipal manager is an insult to constitutional democracy. If true, it shows how far real democracy remains from the people, while politically deployed officials serve only their benefactors.

That council allegedly allowed itself to be manipulated in this way is reason enough for the Northern Cape province to invoke Section 139 of the Constitution. The municipality has failed to act independently or in the interests of its community. 

Combined with repeated service delivery failures, allegations of corruption, the collapse of the local economy, and unproductive councillors, the case for intervention is overwhelming.

If it is proven that undue influence played a role in the municipal manager’s appointment, then all related contracts must be investigated under the Municipal Finance Management Act and the Municipal Systems Act. Any irregular contracts must be set aside, funds recovered, and both the SIU and Hawks should ensure that every politician and official who colluded is held accountable.

This is not only about individuals. It is about a system that has become rotten to the core. That is why the Kimberley Action Group calls for Section 139 intervention to be coupled with a thorough, independent forensic investigation into the municipality’s affairs. Residents are ready to support such an investigation because arrests must follow.

While the removal of the municipal manager may be justified, we must also guard against those who see this crisis as a chance to resume looting. They too, must know that what awaits is not renewed opportunities, but prison.

Sol Plaatje Municipality exists to serve its people — not to enrich a privileged few.

Yours sincerely,

Kagiso Boyce Makodi

Kimberley Action Group

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